Hanwha Philadelphia Shipyard names 25-year industry veteran Kim Hyuk as new CEO

Hanwha Philadelphia Shipyard, Hanwha Group's US shipbuilding base, has appointed Kim Hyuk — former head of Hanwha Systems' Smart Vessel Business Center with more than 25 years of industry experience — as its new CEO. The move comes as the shipyard secures US Navy vessel construction contracts, and signals Hanwha's intent to transform the Philadelphia facility from a commercial-vessel operation into a full-scale production base capable of building warships as well.

According to industry sources, Hanwha Philadelphia Shipyard appointed Kim as the successor to David Kim on Monday (local time). Kim graduated from Seoul National University with a degree in naval architecture and ocean engineering before joining Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering, where he spent more than 25 years — including the period after the company became Hanwha Ocean — building expertise in commercial and naval vessel construction. He also worked on offshore projects including floating LNG production facilities, and at Hanwha Systems he led the Smart Vessel Business Center, overseeing the development of unmanned surface vessels and other autonomous maritime systems.

His broad experience spanning commercial ships, warships and unmanned surface vessels made him the clear choice to raise the shipyard's production capabilities. A key task will be transplanting the large-scale shipbuilding know-how accumulated at Hanwha Ocean's Geoje facility — which delivers 35 to 45 commercial and naval vessels a year — to the Philadelphia yard.

Hanwha has been developing the Philadelphia shipyard into a production base capable of building not only commercial vessels but also ships ordered by the US federal government and Navy. In July the shipyard was selected to build the Missile Range Instrumentation Vessel for the US Missile Defense Agency, and it has since secured a contract to build Medium Landing Ships for the US Navy.

Hanwha Defense USA signed a contract with TOTE Services, a US Navy vessel construction manager, on Thursday (local time) to build one Medium Landing Ship. The contract is valued at $269 million and includes options for three additional vessels. The US Navy plans to procure a total of 35 Medium Landing Ships.

Hanwha is also pursuing the US Navy's Next-Generation Logistics Ship program. Hanwha Philadelphia Shipyard and Hanwha Defense USA participated in the conceptual design phase of the program alongside US naval design firm Bard Marine US in March. The experience gained during that phase — reviewing vessel productivity, construction methods and costs — is expected to strengthen the company's position in future bids for the main contract.

The leadership change is also tied to a restructuring of Hanwha's US shipbuilding governance. Hanwha Defense USA, a US subsidiary of Hanwha Aerospace, has secured a majority stake in the Philadelphia shipyard, tightening its control over the US shipbuilding business. The shipyard now operates under Tom Anderson, president of Hanwha Defense USA, who oversees its shipbuilding operations.

"Hanwha's facility improvements and investment at the Philadelphia shipyard have positioned us to build vessels not only for commercial customers but also for the US federal government," Anderson said. "We expect the new CEO to bring the large-scale shipbuilding experience he gained at Hanwha Ocean's Geoje facility to the Philadelphia yard."

Kim said he would "build on the foundation Hanwha has established since acquiring the shipyard to strengthen operational capabilities and expand vessel construction capacity," adding that he would focus on developing a workforce capable of supporting both commercial and naval shipbuilding programs.